Final Stats

CHICAGO - Maureen Carls ripped a career-high 19 kills to lead four hitters in double figures to lead Loyola to a 3-2 (21-25, 25-22, 25-13, 18-25, 15-7) win over Drake tonight at Gentile Arena. The win pushes the Ramblers to 9-18 (5-12 Valley) while the Bulldogs drop to 11-17 (3-14) with the loss.

As has been the case for much of the year, Loyola got off to a slow start with Drake jumping out to an 8-3 lead on a Nicole Woods kill. The Ramblers slowly began to settle into the match and pulled within three, 12-9, after kills from Libby Bresser and Brittany Brown. A Kelly Feigh ace later capped a 6-1 run to cut LU's deficit to one but the Ramblers could never get over the hump. Three LU errors helped Drake re-open a four-point lead (19-15) and a Kyla Inderski kill gave the visitors the opening set, 25-21.

Loyola started the second set strong, using kills from Brown and Morgan Reardon, as well as a Kathleen Vogel ace, to take a 4-0 lead. Drake scored six of the next nine points to draw within one and the Ramblers maintained at least a three-point lead through the middle stages of the set. A Carls kill made it a 16-11 game before Drake rallied, scoring the next four points to get within one. Loyola answered quickly, using two kills from Carls to ignite a five-point run that gave the hosts a seemingly comfortable 21-15 lead. Drake made one last run, getting as close as two (23-21) before a Reardon kill closed out a 25-22 win that evened the match at one set apiece.

The third set was all Loyola, with three straight Brown kills and a Feigh ace staking the Ramblers to an early lead that they would not relinqish. Reardon fired an ace and Sami Hansen teamed up with Caroline Holt and Carls for a pair of blocks to make it a 10-3 spread. The Ramblers cruised from there, closing with a flourish as another Carls kill put a bow on a 25-13 win that gave Loyola a 2-1 lead in the match.

The fourth set was close in the early stages, with neither team leading by more than two to get to 15-15. However, it was Drake that was able to string some points together, scoring the next five to take control of the set with a 20-15 lead. An Emily Carr kill and a DU error helped Loyola make a slight dent in the deficit but the Bulldogs found their rhythm, outscoring the Ramblers 10-3 to close the set, sending the match to a decisive fifth set after a 25-18 win.

However, the fifth set was all Loyola from the opening point. Reardon was able to side-out right away to get Loyola on the board and Brown followed with a pair of kills to make it 3-0. It was 5-0 later after another Brown kill and, after an error gave the Bulldogs their first point, the Ramblers rattled off the next four to put a strangehold on the set with a 9-1 lead. Drake managed to get as close as five but never seriously threatened with Carls' 19th kill serving as the exclamation point on a 15-7 win that gave the Ramblers their fifth win in five tries over the Bulldogs in the Windy City.

Loyola was the aggressor all night and the Ramblers enjoyed a whopping 72-39 edge in kills for the match. Thirty-one errors helped Drake stay in the match and brought LU's hitting percentage down to .228 for the night.

Carls was outstanding, hitting .400 (19-3-40) en route to her career-high 19 kills. She received plenty of help and was joined in double figures by Brown (17 kills), Reardon (16 kills, career-high 27 digs) and Sami Hansen (11 kills, six blocks).

Loyola closes out its 2014 season tomorrow night when it hosts UNI on Senior Night. The trio of Libby Bresser, Laura Purcell and Mary Kate Styler will be honored in a prematch ceremony ahead of a 7 p.m. first serve.